Visiting HB’s Spark Woodfire Grill

November 6, 2011
Scott Mindeaux, Editor

Well it was a rainy day here in Southern California, but I wanted to have lunch by the beach. I met my friend Daron at the Spark Woodfire Grill located right across the street from the Huntington Beach Pier off PCH.

Had this been a typical Southern California day, it would have been sunny and the beach full of surfers enjoying the hot rays of the sun. Unfortunately it was cold and rainy. A typically busy restaurant for lunch was a bit empty due to the weather – but don’t let that distract you from the fact that the food was good.

We started off our meal with an order of Cheese Bread. This wasn’t what I expected. When it arrived, there was a nice broiled layer of parmesan and mozzarella cheese on fresh bread. What I didn’t expect, was when I bit into the bread a soft, gooey layer of cheese met my mouth. There was a slight char to the top of the cheese, but the gooeyness of the cheese was the surprise. Most places you have cheesy bread it’s usually a very light layer of cheese.

Daron opted for the Tilamook Cheeseburger and I had the Sonoma Chicken.

My Sonoma Chicken was a Grilled Chicken Breast served over caramelized onions with Goat Cheese Polenta and Wilted Spinach. The chicken breast was very most. It was pre-sliced so it was a no-fuss meal. The onions were good, but what I wanted more of was that Goat Cheese Polenta under the onions and chicken. No grittiness, just soft pillows of polenta meeting my fork then up to my mouth. The wilted spinach could have used another 30 seconds on the heat and a slight pinch of salt in my opinion. I’m usually not fond of post-coooking sprinkle of salt on my food, so I went on. This is a dish I could easily reproduce at home and I intend to.

Daron’s burger arrived. He likes his meat well done where I would have asked for medium-rare. There was a nice slice of Tilamook Cheddar on top that was put under the salamander and got a nice crust. Fresh bread and crisp leaves of lettuce along with chopped red onions made for a great burger for him. His order of fries were crisp. I took one and snapped it in half and made for a nice cracking sound.

I have to come back to this place for dinner when the place is more full. The ambiance was way too silent on this rainy day. There were only about 5 patrons in the restaurant at the time we were there. We only a couple of dishes, but it’s enough to make me come back for another visit.

Have you been here before? What did you think? Do you have a favorite dish from their menu?

Spark Woodfire Grill has three locations. In addition to Hungtington Beach, they have restaurants in Beverly Hills and Studio City.